When to Replace All Your Teeth with Permanent Implants?

Permanent Dental Implants or Save Natural Teeth?

 

 

Just like a losing poker hand, you need to know when to fold. Are you tired of trips to the dentist? Massive dental bills? Unsightly teeth that keep falling apart? So why not end the misery once and for all? Dental implants offer a cosmetic and permanent solution to recurring teeth problems.

 

Contact Dr. Adams for a complimentary implant consultation including 3D Xray

 

 

How to Know When to Replace All you Teeth:

 

1. If you are missing nearly half your teeth, it will cost more to fix. And keeping teeth will not last as long.
2. If your remaining teeth are crooked and not straight, you will get a better cosmetic result with permanent implant dentures because the teeth can be put where they look and function the best.
3. If you have a lot of root canals, these teeth are dead and there is a greater risk of them breaking or getting infected. See article root canal vs implant.
4. if you need a lot of expensive dental work on your natural teeth and you get a lot of cavities, repairs on natural teeth may not last a long time.
5. If you have long-standing gum disease, it is more predictable to replace your teeth with implants

 

 

Replacing a Full Mouth of Teeth with Dental Implants

 

This is a big decision and once it is done, there is no going back. Remove all your natural teeth and you cannot put them back. What happens if you hate the new teeth? Unlike a new car, you cannot take new teeth for a test drive and give them back. Most people love their all on 4 style implant teeth, but they are different than natural teeth. You need to know what you are getting yourself into.

 

There are Several Different Types of Implants

 

Additionally, there are many different ways to replace all teeth with implants. Make sure you understand all available options. You need to know what to expect with your new teeth. And how much it costs to replace all your teeth with implants. For purposes of this article we are considering the most popular permanent way to replace teeth with implants. Removable Snap-in dentures are also an option. And you can consider replacing all your teeth with individual implant crowns and bridges, but this solution is ridiculously expensive and usually not practical or superior to permanent implant dentures.

 

How are Permanent Implant Dentures Different?

 

1. Permanent implant dentures is a full upper or lower set of teeth installed as one piece into the mouth. The implant teeth feel different since they are one piece and made of a different material. The teeth are smoother and thicker than natural teeth. Not necessarily a bad thing but different.
2. Permanent implant teeth do not have nerves. Implants do not feel hot or cold. Probably a good thing. Implant teeth can chew with more pressure and without pain. Again a good thing until something breaks. A strong set of zirconia teeth is important for longevity. Some of the acrylic implant teeth can break more easily over time. Make sure you know whether you are getting zirconia or acrylic plastic implant teeth.
3. Hygiene and maintenance is different around permanent dentures. Implant maintenance is done with a tooth brush, waterpik and special brushes and floss.

 

Our Implant Center is Located in Burtonsville Maryland

 

Dr. Gary Adams sees patients in a small private practice setting in Burtonsville near Columbia Maryland. Dr. Adams does implant surgery and places the teeth that go on top. He practices with a holistic approach to dentistry that combines all the advantages of conventional implant dentistry and holistic techniques including PRF, PRP and dental ozone therapy. Dr. Adams has been replacing teeth permanently with implants for over 15 years. Most people we see come from the Maryland, Virginia and DC metro area. But we also see many people who travel from across the US and abroad.

 

Other Options to Replace a Full Mouth of Teeth:

 

1. Conventional Dentures
2. Don’t Remove all your natural teeth. Consider saving your natural teeth. Saving your natural teeth may involve removing some bad teeth that are not repairable or worth fixing.
3. Do a partial mouth of implants. Save some of your natural teeth and replacing some of your teeth with dental implants. Sometimes, it costs less and the result can be better when just replacing some of your teeth with dental implants.

 

Partial Mouth of Dental Implants:

 

Often times the best option is to save all your good teeth, remove only the bad ones and replace only the teeth you need with individual implants and implant crowns and bridges. Sometimes extracting all your teeth is too aggressive. While full mouth implant options are wonderful, removing perfectly good teeth may not be the best option. You should consider how long saved teeth will last relative to implants and if saving teeth will compromise your result. For example, if keeping teeth will not look as nice and your are very susceptible to losing teeth and getting cavities and gum disease, it may be better to remove all your teeth and replace with a full mouth of dental implants. On the other had is your back teeth are good and you only need to replace your front teeth, it may be better to keep your back teeth and replace your front ones with a front tooth implant bridge.

 

What is All on 4 Dental Implants?

 

 

Permanent implant dentures is a way to permanently replace a full upper or lower set of natural teeth with a one-piece implant bridge. They are “also knows as All on 4.” Any remaining natural teeth need to be removed.  4 or more dental implants are installed per jaw.  Finally, a set of teeth are installed onto the implants. All on 4 is a great option and is a lot less expensive than replacing all your teeth with individual implants and crowns. Of course it is necessary to remove all your teeth to do All on 4. It may be better to save some of your teeth and replace only the bad ones with implants. You should discuss what implant option is best with Dr. Adams. Clear Choice dental implants is a national chain that sells the All on 4 concept as their primary product. All on four may not be the best solution for everyone. Once you have removed your teeth, you cannot put them back. Make sure you understand the cost of All on 4 and all the pros and cons prior to removing your natural teeth.

 

Full Dental Implants with Individual Crowns and Bridges

 

This option is self explanatory. All natural teeth are extracted and 20-25 dental implants are used to replace all natural teeth with individual implant crowns and implant bridges.

 

Bone Grafting, Gum Grafting, PRF Dental Stem Cells:

 

Very often implants may need bone grafting with platelet rich fibrin or PRF dental treatments. Also it may not be possible in all cases to remove teeth and perform implant surgery in the same day. This is called immediate implant surgery. Due to bone loss and infection it may be necessary to remove teeth and place the implants at a later date – delayed implant surgery.

 

Same Day Teeth or Teeth in a Day

 

It is almost always possible to deliver new teeth the same day all your teeth are removed. However, you do not need to be a dentist to know implants do not heal in 10 seconds and holes in you gum will heal and change shape. Therefore no dentist can complete a full mouth of dental implant case in one day unless he/she can turn water into wine. The good news is we can sedate you with IV sedatives, remove all your teeth, place several dental implants and deliver temporary teeth the Same Day. Then you will need to heal for 2-4 months at which point we can make your All on 4 or full mouth of implants. Typically this process only involves one day of surgery and the rest is easy.